Controversial Brandon Lloyd returns to Candlestick

Loud, divisive and ribald, wide receiver Brandon Lloyd once earned the moniker “plastic man” for his long-limps, limber body and theatrical catches. He also alienated several in the 49ers locker room after the team took him in the fourth round of the 2003 draft.

As a Niner, he exhibited great promise but little production. Eventually, Lloyd was traded to Washington for third- and fourth-round draft picks from former 49er-turned-Redskins general manager Vinny Cerrato.

In Washington, Lloyd was worse. Coach Joe Gibbs benched, suspended and eventually released him for what the Washington Post called the worst year ever for a receiver starting 12 games in the Super Bowl era (23 catches, 265 yards, no touchdowns). Lloyd was picked up by the Bears for a year until finally arriving in Denver. Now, after a recent trade from Denver to St. Louis, Lloyd returns to Candlestick this Sunday as a Ram.

Lloyd admittedly had a rough time in the 49ers’ locker room controlled by defensive tackle Bryant Young, who ruled with a quiet strength based on his strong religious beliefs. Lloyd was exceptionally loud and would spontaneously break into his expletive-filled raps that alienated him from some of his teammates. Some also felt he was more preoccupied with becoming a hip-hop star rather than a football player, a criticism Lloyd felt was misplaced.
“I don’t think it was ever a real distraction,” he said. “It was something that people would always bring up because I wasn’t performing as well as they thought I should be, so they tried to come up with that as the excuse for the reason why.”

Many of his 49ers teammates were unwilling to accept Lloyd’s prima donna personality (which included his aversion to contact and a reluctance to block) and low production. Lloyd addressed those issues in a conference call this week along with his prickly relationship with the San Francisco media.

“It’s a lot to take. And it’s compounded by your teammates who you respect and you hope respect you, and I felt like I got dog-piled on out there,” Lloyd said. “My natural reaction was to try to defend myself with words. And it wasn’t the right way to go about it.”

Despite leading the league with 1,410 yards last season and scoring 11 touchdowns, the Broncos traded all that production for a mere sixth-round pick that could move to a fifth if Lloyd catches 30 passes with the Rams (he needs 24 catches in the next five games to reach 30).

Denver probably made the deal because Lloyd is not a great blocker for a running quarterback like Tim Tebow. Lloyd also didn’t like the way Denver handled its quarterback situation. Lloyd thought Denver should have traded Kyle Orton in the summer and started Tebow from the beginning.

“Hey, trade him now so we can go into the Tebow era. Let’s get it over with, and see if he’s got it,” Lloyd said. “Let’s build the offense around him. Let’s do that. But don’t have a starting quarterback and run an offense and the anticipation for Tim to play be so powerful that it just distracts the team.”

While Lloyd talked, he was distracted by his new Rams teammates. Lloyd was apparently in a room with glass windows and at least four players mooned him as he spoke. It caused Lloyd to keep busting up.

“I need to eat, it’s after practice. I’m having trouble thinking anyway, so bare (expletive) up against the window is definitely a distraction,” Lloyd said.

Lloyd is likely to be front and center for the 49ers this Sunday as one of the few weapons on the Rams’ injury-ravaged offense.